Jan. 27, 2005
Dolores Beasley
Headquarters, Washington
(Phone: 202/358-1753)
William Jeffs
Johnson Space Center, Houston
(Phone: 281/483-5111)
Susan Killenberg McGinn
Washington University, St. Louis
(Phone: 314/935-5254)
RELEASE: 05-030
NASA SENDS FIRST GENESIS EARLY-SCIENCE SAMPLE TO RESEARCHERS
NASA scientists have sent to academic researchers an unprecedented
piece of the sun gathered by the Genesis spacecraft, enabling the
start of studies to achieve the mission's initial science objectives.
Scientists at NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston recently
shipped a piece of the Genesis polished aluminum collector to
researchers at Washington University in St. Louis. The shipment
marked the first distribution of a Genesis scientific sample from JSC
since the science canister arrived on Oct. 4, 2004. Preliminary
examination of the sample by researchers has confirmed it contains
solar ions, traces of the solar wind.
"Reaching this point in our work and being able to send out this first
Genesis scientific sample marks a milestone in recovery efforts,
following the spacecraft mishap upon re-entry last September," said
Dr. Eileen Stansbery, Deputy Director of JSC's Astromaterials
Research and Exploration Science Directorate. "The team has done an
outstanding job of curating these precious samples, performing
preliminary exams, investigating numerous techniques to reduce or
eliminate contamination that occurred upon impact, and preparing the
samples for distribution to researchers," she noted.
Washington University researchers Charles Hohenberg and Alex Meshik
will study the sample to try to determine detailed information about
the gases that make up the sun.
Although most of the solar wind is comprised of hydrogen, Genesis'
goal was to capture samples of all elements in the periodic table to
allow a detailed study of the sun's composition. The aluminum
collector was designed to capture solar wind samples that can be used
to measure the amounts of neon, argon, krypton and xenon, called the
noble gases, the sun contains.
"Gaining a better understanding of the noble gas elements in the sun
is one of the 19 specific scientific measurement objectives
originally proposed for the Genesis mission," said Stansbery. "We are
delighted to provide this sample to our Washington University
colleagues. We look forward to the results of the research they are
already conducting in this critical area, and we are increasingly
optimistic that even more science data will be obtained from Genesis
samples in the coming months," she added.
The Washington University study is the first of two scientific
objectives that make up the initial research program planned for
Genesis. The other early science objective involves studies of
nitrogen from samples.
Genesis clean-room activities are now focused on preparing the second
early science sample, the gold foil, for distribution in the next few
weeks to researchers at the University of Minnesota. The gold foil
collected bulk solar wind and will be used to study nitrogen
isotopes.
Genesis was launched Aug. 8, 2001, from the Cape Canaveral Air Force
Station in Florida on a mission to collect solar wind particles. The
science phase of the mission was completed on April 1, 2004,
following the collection of samples that began on Dec. 5, 2001.
Following an extensive recovery effort since its Sept. 8 impact at a
Utah landing site, the first scientific samples from the Genesis
space probe arrived at JSC on Oct. 4, 2004.
Still imagery of JSC curators preparing the polished aluminum sample
for distribution is available on the Internet at:
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/genesis/multimedia/genesis_samples_shipped.html
Information on the JSC Genesis Team is available at:
http://www-curator.jsc.nasa.gov/curator/genesis/
For more information about the Genesis mission on the Internet, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/genesis
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